Fireworks 4.0 Mac

The starting point is a familiar range of drawing and painting tools, such as shapes, lines, brushes, pens and selection tools. In the default vector mode they create editable, scaleable objects, and in bitmap mode they paint pixels. Fireworks supports layers and masks, virtual overlaid surfaces that you can edit independently, enabling designers to achieve a wide range of effects. For example, you can vary opacity and blending to fine-tune the final appearance. Other Firework panels include colour, stroke, fill and effects. There is also a library panel where you can store graphic elements for reuse.

A key feature for Web designers is optimisation. Fireworks offers maximum control over the critical trade-off between quality and size. A two-up and four-up view lets you compare the quality of original and optimised versions, using techniques such as reducing colour depth and removing unused colours. There is strong support for GIF, JPEG and PNG image formats. Fireworks lets you create animation that is exported as an animated GIF. It will also generate Javascript to produce image rollovers and in this new version, pop-up menus. There is great support for hotspots and slices, techniques for mapping or dividing an image to support HTML features. Integration with Macromedia's Dreamweaver 4 is better than ever in version 4. (Dreamweaver 4/Fireworks Studio 4.0 combines the two products at a lower price.) You can export to Dreamweaver, or launch Fireworks directly from Dreamweaver, edit an image, and save it back with all Fireworks-specific information preserved. --Tim Anderson

Support for multiple file formats and common design standards lets you quickly design and produce graphics, HTML and JavaScript that can be moved seamlessly between popular graphics and HTML applications such as Adobe Photoshop, and Macromedia Flash and Dreamweaver. Use accessible controls to reposition, redirect and reanimate simple animation across multiple frames from within the Fireworks workspace. Quickly set up and execute batch processes, including commands, with the step-by-step Batch Processing Wizard. Edit and update HTML and JavaScript code and graphics from Dreamweaver while maintaining edits to your table. Use enhanced set-up and export of HTML/JavaScript and images to customise automatic file naming, table handling and other output options.